


Christmas Crushes

by the-intelligent-blonde (fallen_angel_ashes7)



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, Christmas Tree, Crushes, F/F, Fluff, Girls in Love, Idiots in Love, M/M, Secret Santa, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-30
Updated: 2013-12-30
Packaged: 2018-01-06 16:42:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,190
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1109144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallen_angel_ashes7/pseuds/the-intelligent-blonde
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Every Christmas Eve for the past 5 years, Sasha has hosted a Secret Santa Christmas Party for the 104th Scouts. This year is going to be different, whether Armin is ready or not.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Christmas Crushes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jean_huh_kirschnickerdoodle](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jean_huh_kirschnickerdoodle/gifts).



> In response to a meme jean-huh-kirschnickerdoodle gave me on Tumblr, my brain created this. ^.^ Merry Christmas, everyone. <3

Armin let out a heavy sigh and rang the doorbell, clutching the small, wrapped box to his chest. It was that time of year again, the time when Sasha hosted her annual Secret Santa Christmas Party and everyone in the 104th Scouts showed up to hang out with their friends. This was the 5th year of their little tradition and Sasha had informed everyone that it would be their best year yet! Armin had been unsure about that from the beginning of December but with a little coaxing from Mikasa, and a lot of whining from Eren, he had reluctantly agreed to go.

"Armin! You’re here! I’m glad you came. Come on! Everyone is already inside!" Sasha’s squeal pulled Armin out of his thoughts and a sheepish smile spread across his lips. He had to admit to himself that Sasha’s enthusiasm was infectious as he nodded and let her drag him through the threshold by the sleeve of his jacket.

"A-Am I the last one then?" Armin inquired quietly as she tugged him to the living room where his friends were gathered. Sasha nodded, her high ponytail swaying as her head bobbed.

Inside the house, the scent of gingerbread and sugar filled his nose and made his stomach growl. As the pair entered the room, the warmth emanating from both the vents and fireplace chased away any attempt the seeping cold from outside made at chilling the teens. Sasha’s house wasn’t the largest on the block, but it was definitely big enough to hold all 12 friends comfortably.

After discarding his jacket, scarf, and shoes in the hallway, Armin stepped into the living room and paused to take in the sight before him. Directly across from the doorway, the fireplace crackled with life and Ymir sat holding Christa in her lap on the stoop in front of it. The freckled girl was currently trying to attack the smaller girls neck with her face and Christa was struggling in vain against the iron grip around her waist. Armin would have been alarmed at the sight if he hadn’t caught the faint sound of Christa’s breathless giggle and seen a flash of her brilliant smile past the whirl of her blonde locks.

Turning his attention away from them, he noticed the large, white sofa had been moved a little farther back than normal to make way for the large tree off to the right side of the room. He recognized the black hair of Mikasa instantly sitting on the soft cushions and stepped closer to her, only to blink in surprise when he realized she was talking quietly with Annie who was sitting on the floor with her head resting back against the sofa. He smiled at the sight, pleased to see the two getting along for once.

"What the hell are you doing, Jaeger?! You’re supposed to put the lights on first, then the tinsel!" The angry voice made Armin jump and he glanced towards the tree to see Eren and Jean arguing about how to put up the decorations. Nothing short of unusual how the boys couldn’t stop fighting, even if it _was_ Christmas.

"C’mon, guys! Stop fighting for once in your life!" Armin heard Connie’s plea before he watched the boy emerge from behind the tree and roll his eyes at his friends. From the window behind Jean, Marco let out a soft chuckle as he placed a fake white candle in the sill and bit the inside of his cheek to keep from doubling over with laughter at the look Jean shot him.

"Please make sure they don’t destroy my home." Sasha leaned close and murmured in Armin’s ear. "I need to go make sure Reiner and Bertholdt are doing alright in the kitchen." She let out a soft giggle and Armin turned his head to flash her a knowing look. She turned on her heel and called over her shoulder before striding off towards the kitchen, "Hey, guys! Armin’s here! I’ll leave you to it then."

"Armin! Thank God, you’re here! Will you please inform this asshole that you can put tinsel on the tree before the lights?" Eren was at his side in an instant, grabbing his wrist and hauling him towards the small group gathered around the cause of their argument. Armin had to stifle a giggle at Eren’s antics.

"He has a point, Eren. It’s fairly common to put the lights on the tree before anything else." Armin pointed out and Eren groaned as Jean flashed him a triumphant smile. "But," he continued with a small, apologetic smile at his best friend, "technically you’re allowed to decorate the tree however you’d like. There really is no ‘wrong' way to do it.”

"Hah!" Eren smirked at Jean, who grumbled at his short lived victory and turned away. Armin mumbled a small "Sorry" and moved to sit on the floor with his back pressed against the arm of the couch near Mikasa. She lazily reached down to pet his hair and he leaned into her hand, enjoying the soothing feeling and letting her reassure him that he was okay. He watched as Marco and Connie tried to help the fighting pair actually decorate the tree and marveled at the end result just as Sasha came bustling in with Bertholdt and Reiner close behind.

"The ham is resting which means it’s time for presents! Everyone write your name on one of these strips of paper and put it in the Santa hat!" she exclaimed as she neared the group and suddenly Armin felt very nervous again. He fiddled with the small rectangular box in his lap anxiously, hoping that whoever ended up with his gift liked it. Sasha placed some paper and several pens along with the hat onto the glass coffee table that sat nestled between the fireplace and sofa. As soon as she stepped back, everyone except Armin surged forward to quickly scribble down their name. Once a window opened up for him, he scrambled onto his knees to reach forward and write down his name before stuffing his paper into the hat.

"Alright! Everyone done? Good! Here we go! I’ll start us off!" Sasha reached into the hat, swirling her hand around to mix the names up before grasping a slip and pulling it out. She hurriedly unfolded it and read the name out loud. "Eren! Catch!" she pulled the circular gift off of her lap and tossed it carelessly at the brunet. Eren fumbled with the package for a moment before his fingers clasped around it and he held it still, tossing a friendly glare towards the giggling girl.

"Betcha five bucks that it’s food." he teased her and she replied by sticking her tongue out at him. He chuckled and tore at the wrapping, producing a tin filled with cookies. "Called it! You owe me five bucks, Sash!" he laughed teasingly. "Thanks."

"They’re home-made and I don’t owe you shit, Eren!" she laughed back at him and turned to hold the hat out to the next friend in the circle, Connie. Around the circle they went; Connie giving Reiner a pair of cheap silly sunglasses, Marco stunning everyone by giving Annie a small pin with their scout patch (a pair of wings) on it, a slightly frightened Jean giving Ymir a Trost High baseball cap, and Eren giving Mikasa a beautifully crafted candle holder complete with a warm vanilla scented candle.

"Armin! You’re up!" Sasha beamed at him and he sat forward, sticking his hand into the hat and grasping the first slip of paper his fingers touched. He gulped and carefully unfolded it, his heart stopping dead in his chest when he read the name. Jean. Shit. He glanced up at the golden eyed boy, his expectant gaze trained on Armin’s face in anticipation, and forced himself to take a deep breath and smile.

"H-Here, Jean." he internally kicked himself when his voice wavered slightly but he held the package out to him. Curiosity blazed to life in Jean’s eyes and he took the gift, tearing the wrapping off with a vigor rivaling that of Eren and slipped the cover off of the box. "I-It’s a book." Armin spoke up quickly, feeling the need to explain his gift as Jean turned it over in his hands. A look of disappointment flashed across Jean’s face. A book. How original.

"I-I made it.. It’s full of my favorite poetry a-and pictures that I took of places around the city." _That_ , on the other hand, was quite original. Jean glanced between Armin and the book and flipped it open, eyes skimming across the neat scrawl and looking closely at the crystal clear picture of the lakefront after the first big snow. It was beautiful and Jean let out a soft gasp as he realized he loved the gift more than he had initially thought.

"Thank you, Armin. It looks amazing." Jean ignored the quiet giggles and snickers from the others as he focused on the blushing blonde boy. Armin squeaked out something unintelligible and looked away. Sasha cleared her throat to continue the sharing and draw the attention off of the flustered boys. Marco nudged Jean in the ribs and chuckled softly causing Jean to flash him a half-hearted glare.

After Armin received his gift from Christa, Disney’s animated classic The Aristocats on Blu-ray, and once dinner was over, a delicious meal provided by Reiner and Bertholdt in which Armin couldn’t look at Jean without blushing all over again, everyone found themselves back in the living room to watch Elf on Sasha’s high definition television mounted above the fireplace. Sneaking a quick glance in Jean’s direction, Armin flushed bright pink and instantly turned away when he saw the amber eyed boy watching him again. Feeling antsy and suddenly needing a drink, Armin stood and walked back towards the kitchen.

"I-I’m gonna get something to drink. Anyone want something while I’m up?" he called over his shoulder. "I’ll take a Coca-Cola! Thanks, Armin!" came Eren’s reply and the blonde hurried off. He stopped once he reached the fridge, grasping the handles and holding them so tight that the whites of his knuckles were showing. He hung his head, letting the blonde fringe of his bangs fall into his ocean blue eyes. "Get a grip, Armin. Don’t lose your cool or he’ll figure it out." he growled at himself, unaware of the figure that had followed him into the room. He wrenched the fridge doors open and grabbed a can of Coca-Cola for Eren and a Dr. Pepper for himself.

He turned, eyes downcast, and walked back towards the living room, only to stop suddenly with a squeak when he walked headlong into Jean who’d been standing in the doorway. His eyes shot up and he started to stammer an apology when the taller pressed a gentle index finger to his lips. An amused smile settled onto Jean’s face, warm and kind unlike the usual smirks he would flash at Eren. Armin shut up immediately and stared up at him with wide eyes, noticing the sprig of mistletoe hung above his head.

Just as Armin noticed the greenery, Jean’s finger dipped down to keep his chin tilted up at him while he leaned down to brush his lips against the shorter males. Armin stiffened with a quiet, startled yelp, but Jean lifted his other hand to cup his heated cheek and run his thumb gently across the smooth skin. Armin relaxed against the hand and lifted onto his tiptoes to press his lips back against Jean’s. The brunet chuckled softly against his eager lips and pulled back to smile down at him. Armin blushed and flashed him a bashful smile causing a light laugh to escape Jean’s throat.

"I wanted to thank you again, but I heard you talking and with what happened at the circle and then at dinner, I just figured…" Jean trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck and shifting his gaze away from the cute boy in front of him.

"O-Oh…" Armin turned his eyes towards his feet, chewing his lower lip anxiously. "M’sorry." he mumbled.

"I’m not." Jean’s quick reply had Armin looking at him curiously and he laughed nervously. "It wasn’t very hard to figure out what you were talking about over there."

They fell into a comfortable silence, the sounds of laughing and the movie playing in the other room swirling around them although the noises fell on deaf ears as they carefully watched each other. Armin searched Jean’s eyes for any sign of resentment or disgust, taking a deep breath that he hadn’t realized he’d been holding when he found none. All he saw was a sweetness he’d never realized Jean was capable of showing and he smiled shyly.

Jean took his smile as a cue to lean in again and kiss him. Armin made a soft, happy noise and kissed him back, relief and happiness flooding through him. When Jean pulled away again, he brushed his lips across Armin’s and murmured, "Merry Christmas, Armin. Will you go out with me?"

"Merry Christmas, Jean. Yes, I will."


End file.
